Northeast
Historic Maryland church opens doors to visitors 320 years after closing down
Visitors have been able to step into a reconstructed 17th-century Catholic church in Maryland for the first time – an opportunity over 320 years in the making.
Historic St. Mary’s City, an archaeological organization, opened up its Brick Chapel on April 12. The building was originally constructed in 1667. St. Mary’s City is a colonial town located in St. Mary’s County, off the western shore of Chesapeake Bay.
Fox News Digital spoke to Henry Miller, Ph.D., a senior research fellow at Historic St. Mary’s City, about the opening, the result of multiple excavations since 1988. (See the video at the top of this article.)
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While a wooden chapel was first built on the site in 1645, the structure burned down when Maryland was attacked by troops from the English Parliament.
“But in the 1660s, things had settled down, and the Brick Chapel, the first major brick building in Maryland, began to be constructed,” Miller said. “It was a very significant architectural achievement for the time and place.”
The church was “the center of Catholic worship in Maryland” until 1704, said Henry Miller, Ph.D., when a Protestant governor closed the church down. (Historic St. Mary’s City)
In the colonial era, it was generally forbidden by law for Catholics to have any churches, but Maryland offered a notable exception.
“It was only because of Lord Baltimore’s policy of liberty, of conscience and freedom of religion that [the church] could be erected,” the expert said.
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“So [the church] is really an important statement about the beginnings of religious freedom in what is now the United States and beyond.”
The Brick Chapel was the center of Catholic worship in Maryland until 1704, when the colony’s Protestant governor shuttered the building’s doors, Miller said. The sheriff “locked the door, [took] the key with him, and never again allow[ed] that building to be used for worship.”
Historic St. Mary’s City, an archaeological organization, opened its reconstructed Brick Chapel on April 12 after decades of historical work. (Historic St. Mary’s City)
“The freedom of belief, the freedom of religion that Lord Baltimore had championed totally ended at that time period,” the archaeologist said.
“A few years later, the building was demolished, and it basically disappeared from view and memory for over 200 years.”
“That building could not have been constructed anywhere else in the English-speaking world at this time.”
The church was entirely forgotten about until 1938, when an architectural historian spotted peculiar remains of a cross-shaped brick building.
Today, the Brick Chapel – rebuilt between 2004 and 2009 – has a recently finished interior that accurately captures what a 17th-century Catholic church would have looked like at the time.
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Miller recreated the building’s interior through several means, such as researching similar churches and obtaining art that was commonly used in Jesuit churches, he said. Not many artifacts survive at the site, thanks to Jesuits who dismantled their church and reused the materials elsewhere.
“The Jesuits were some of the first recyclers … They took everything above ground away and reused it,” Miller said.
“What we found were lots of fragments of plaster, of mortar and the five-foot-deep, three-foot-wide brick foundation.”
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“We actually let visitors see some of that original brickwork,” Miller added. “There was weird stone we found there in pieces, [and] we now know that they imported 14 tons of stone from Europe to pave the floor of this building.”
But the church still retains some original features. Miller also noted that the original tabernacle of the church survived, along with 17th-century lead coffins that visitors can view under a glass floor.
The chapel required extensive construction work and research to determine what a 17th-century Catholic church would have looked like. (Historic St. Mary’s City)
“The graves are both all around and inside the chapel,” Miller said. “There’s maybe 60 or 70 graves in the chapel, but there’s 300 to 400 outside.”
He added, “This was the largest 17th century cemetery in Maryland. So the grave distribution showed us also where the altar area, the formal area, began.”
Still, the process has been challenging – and Miller was only able to find one written description of the chapel, dating back to the late 1690s.
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“A Protestant governor, Francis Nicholson, was very anti-Catholic,” the archaeologist said. “And he said in a report, ‘The Catholics have several chapels in Maryland, including a good brick chapel at Saint Mary’s.’”
“We want you, as a visitor, to walk in and have a sense of what a 17th-century person would have seen.”
Miller joked, “Oh, how we wish he was a verbose kind of guy who would have given us more information. But for him to even say it was ‘good’ was probably a significant clue there.”
He added, “So it is based on lots of different information. It is as accurate as we can come up with.”
Still, the historian emphasized that no formal worship will take place in the new building – instead, it will exist as an exhibit on the history of religious freedom in Maryland.
“The seeds of faith planted there … grew the church and the first diocese that was established in Maryland in the year 1790,” Miller said. “So it truly is the founding place of the modern Catholic Church in the United States.”
The Brick Chapel is an accurate reconstruction of the original 1667 structure on the same site (foundation seen here) — and it has taken historians decades to recreate the church. (Historic St. Mary’s City)
“But it’s also a symbol, and this is what’s important,” he said. “That building could not have been constructed anywhere else in the English-speaking world at this time.”
Visitors may be surprised by the elegance of the church’s interior. Instead of a classic colonial New England church filled with wooden pews, the Brick Chapel has no pews at all.
Miller noted that, in colonial-era Catholic churches, worshippers either stood or knelt.
“The pews are more of a Protestant innovation,” Miller added. “If you had a two-hour-long sermon, seating would be very helpful there. Catholic sermons were probably considerably shorter.”
Visitors will be able to view original 17th-century lead coffins through a glass pane in the chapel. (Historic St. Mary’s City)
Miller said that decades of work have created a “unique exhibit.”
“We also want you, as a visitor, to walk in and have a sense of what a 17th-century person would have seen,” the archaeologist said. “We’ve hidden the exhibits in the arms of the building, where you don’t see them until you get right up on top of them.”
“It’s one that we have worked on for over 37 years, but I am delighted that it will finally be completed and we can start more effectively telling this significant American story.”
Fox News Digital’s Brooke Curto and Kyle Schmidbauer contributed to this report.
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David Heidrich lives in Augusta.
From the cliffs of Acadia to the woods and waters of Katahdin’s national monument, Maine’s public lands are more than scenic, they are the backbone of our economy and way of life. Anyone who has spent any amount of time in these or other public places knows that they offer more than just natural beauty. They are central to our identity, drawing visitors from around the world, supporting small businesses and sustaining jobs in communities across the state.
As someone deeply invested in the success of Maine’s outdoor recreation and tourism industries, I know that investing in our public lands will support thriving communities for generations to come. But maintaining these places requires more than appreciation, it requires sustained investment and action.
In 2020, Congress recognized that many of our country’s national parks and other public lands were suffering from decades of deferred maintenance. Roads, bridges, water systems, historic structures and visitor facilities were aging faster than they could be repaired. In response, lawmakers passed the Great American Outdoors Act, which created the National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF).
This landmark legislation provided five years of dedicated funding to address long-overdue repairs on federal lands. Here in Maine, the LRF delivered $54 million for critical repairs to our public lands. These investments supported projects at places like Acadia National Park — improving trails, restoring historic carriage roads and upgrading essential infrastructure — as well as work on national forests and wildlife refuges across the state. These projects have served to protect natural resources, improve safety and enhance visitor experiences while supporting local economies.
Now, with that funding having expired, Congress is considering the America the Beautiful Act, introduced by Sen. Steve Daines of Montana and Maine’s own Sen. Angus King. The bill has received strong bipartisan support, and I want to thank Sen. King and Sen. Collins for their leadership in advocating for this important legislation.
The America the Beautiful Act rises above politics and reflects a shared commitment to conservation and safeguarding the places that help define both Maine and our nation. By continuing to invest in our public lands, we ensure they sustain local economies while preserving natural resources for residents, visitors and future generations alike.
Outdoor recreation is a cornerstone of Maine’s economy. Each year, millions of visitors come to experience our parks, trails, waterways and working forests — supporting roughly 32,000 jobs and generating $3.9 billion in economic activity. That is approximately 5% of Maine’s workforce and 4% of its GDP, respectively. Communities throughout Maine depend on these visitors, and the continued health of our public lands is essential to their continued success.
While important progress has been made, maintenance backlogs on our federal lands persist and require reliable, long-term funding. Congress should pass the America the Beautiful Act because it would provide $2 billion per year for eight additional years to address ongoing maintenance needs across national parks and public lands — without raising taxes.
This is accomplished by: 1) dedicating lease and royalty payments from energy producers operating on federal lands and waters to conservation, 2) requiring federal agencies to identify and dispose of unneeded assets, and 3) leveraging private funding by introducing a preference for projects with a 15% financial match from private stakeholders or nonprofit organizations.
By passing this legislation, Congress can ensure that Maine’s treasured public lands remain safe, accessible and vibrant. If we want future generations to experience Maine as we know it today, we need to invest in it now.
Four Massachusetts companies have announced hundreds of layoffs as residents and businesses flee the state due to what critics describe as soaring energy costs, high taxes, and costly climate mandates.
According to the state’s Worker’s Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) tracker, a total of 283 Massachusetts workers are set to lose their jobs by the end of the fiscal year.
That includes 70 planned layoffs at Innovative Care Partners, which has locations in Northampton, West Springfield and Pittsfield, by June 30; 78 layoffs at Community Health Link at its Webster, Worcester and Lincoln locations, also by June 30; 83 layoffs at Compass Group USA in Boston by July 1; and 52 layoffs at Community Counseling of Bristol County at locations in Attleboro, Brockton, Fall River, New Bedford and Taunton between June 30 and July 13.
These latest notices come as several businesses have been moving out of Massachusetts over the past several months, including some that had been staples of the state’s economy.
In January, the reigning Massachusetts “Manufacturer of the Year,” Curia Global, shut down operations at its Burlington facility. Other notable departures include Thermo Fisher Scientific, Panera Bread, Cape Cod Potato Chips, Zipcar, SynQor, Analogic Corp. and more. Most recently, in April, Takeda Pharmaceuticals announced the elimination of 247 jobs from its Cambridge location.
The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance told the Herald upon Curia Global’s exit that the Bay State has become an increasingly inhospitable business environment.
“The taxes here are high, the climate regulations are pretty extensive and we also have people in positions of power who don’t seem that interested in growing business here,” Executive Director Paul Craney said.
Healey denounces President Trump’s cap on student loans for health care and social workers
Gov. Maura Healey is responding to the Trump administration implementing a rule limiting access to federal student loans for graduate degrees in the nursing, physical therapy, physician assistants, occupational therapy, education and social work fields.
“At a time when people are already struggling with costs, President Trump is making higher education more expensive and harder to access. This rule is going to push students into more expensive private loans, and it blocks pathways into critical careers in the health care and education spaces,” Healey said in a written statement. “As the daughter of a school nurse, I know firsthand how important these jobs are to our communities.”
Healey spoke in opposition to this new rule back in March and continues to warn that it will increase costs and limit career opportunities. She launched a $15 million state loan repayment program for early education and care professionals along with loan repayments for health and human service workers through the MA Repay Program.
The new rule, implemented by the U.S. Department of Education, caps federal graduate student loan borrowing at $20,500 per year for the listed programs the administration deems not “professional.” The Healey-Driscoll Administration estimates that approximately 13,000 Massachusetts graduate students will be impacted.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration calls it a “common sense” regulation that will help control the ever-increasing costs for higher education.
The New Hampshire Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Saturday, May 2, 2026 results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from May 2 drawing
25-37-42-52-65, Powerball: 14, Power Play: 3
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 2 drawing
Day: 6-4-6
Evening: 0-7-6
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 2 drawing
Day: 6-3-8-5
Evening: 4-4-5-7
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Megabucks Plus numbers from May 2 drawing
01-07-10-19-32, Megaball: 05
Check Megabucks Plus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 2 drawing
06-17-31-42-50, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the New Hampshire Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Pick 3, 4: 1:10 p.m. and 6:55 p.m. daily.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Megabucks Plus: 7:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
- Gimme 5: 6:55 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a New Hampshire managing editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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